Hero
by Caramel Kryptonite
Summary: Meet Hero Alecto Laurence, your typical half blood... not. She's a daughter of Nike, goddess of victory. She can help her side win. But her side isn't with the gods, oh no. It's with Kronos, but will an annoying son of Hades be able to change that?
1. Chapter 1

**My first FanFic!**

**Meet Hero Alecto Laurence, your typical half blood... not. She's a daughter of Nike, goddess of victory. She can help her side win. But her side isn't with the gods, oh no. It's with Kronos, but will an annoying son of Hades be able to change that? It sucks to be twelve. Nero in later chapters. Yes, she has a crush on Ethan... I wanted to do a little character development for him :) **

**Edit- Thanks to Ellen 26 for telling me what Ethan looked like. I still made up the eye color, but it's much more canon.**

**Virtues: Confident, quick learner, determined.  
Flaws: Arrogent, prone to hate, looks down on others.**

Hero dispatched the dummy with one last swipe of her sword. She pumped her fist and let out a victory cry.

"Oh, yes! I win!" she gloated, turning to face the older boy. Ethan gave her a sour look and checked the stop watch.

"Fifty seven seconds," he snarled. She rolled her eyes at him.

"In case you've forgotten how to count moron, that's less then sixty. Admit it, I win," she said, a smug smile playing on her lips. He sighed and nodded slowly.

"Okay, you win Hero. I bow down to your infinite knowledge of how to beat up a straw dummy in less then a minute," he said. She raised her eyebrows.

"Is that sarcasm I hear, Ethan?" she asked sweetly.

"Yes, yes it is," he said, grinning at her. She smiled back, flipping her auburn hair over her shoulder unconsciously. She found herself staring at him and quickly looked away. He was, after all, five years older then her and all. However, that didn't stop a blush creeping up her pale cheeks.

He stopped to take a swig from his water bottle before he picked up Apocalypse once more. His long, iron sword was perfectly balanced and ready to fight. A much better weapon then the stupid training sword Luke had given her. She was outraged he underestimated her like that. She'd show him stupid, pompous... Her train of thought was cut off by a scream from below deck. She gave Ethan a questioning look and he shrugged.

"Dan Carson turned out to be a spy," he said, indolently. Her heart contracted slightly, that boy had been in her bunk, he was only fifteen.

"So, what's going to happen to him?" she asked, trying to sound casual. Again Ethan shrugged.

"They'll either kill him or turn him to us for good," he said, shaking some blond hair out of his eyes. She shuddered, knowing full well how they might go about doing that. She put down the sword and put a hand over her beating heart, as if to calm it. Strenuous exercise she was used to, torture she never got the hang off.

Ethan didn't seem bothered. She admired him for that, they were just god brats. They were brainwashed and dumb. Nothing that exciting. Still, she was, for once, glad Luke thought she was too immature to handle that. Normally, she would have kicked his ass to prove she could. Or tried to anyway, he was a Titan half the time.

She shook those thoughts away and went back to watching Ethan sword fight. His longish blond hair fell into a pale green eye (the other covered by a patch) as he twirled around to slice at the dummy. She allowed the hormonal side of her brain to sigh just a little. She knew she was pretty enough, so what idiot decided that he'd be born five years before her? He'd never notice how her auburn hair curled gently, or her dark brown eyes flashed, or her pale skin. No, she was destined to be just the awkward girl he trained to sword fight. That would always be it.

She sighed and put down the sword.

"Eth, I'm going to take a walk," she said, "need a breath of fresh air." He raised an eyebrow but nodded.

"Sure, we'll work on defense when you get back," he winked. They both knew she was dismal at defense. She smiled weakly and practically ran out the door.

She burst out onto the deck and was met with Apollo's shining rays. She hated the gods, but she loved the sun on her skin. Being outside always calmed her, always made her fell reminiscent. Unfortunately, she had nothing pleasant to reminisce about. Only a life with an abusive father and whining stepmother. And then Luke had come, ranting about the Greek gods and told her that her mother, yes, the one that had abandoned her, was Nike, goddess of victory. A lot for a ten year old to comprehend all at once. A lot for _anyone _really.

She gripped her stomach, feeling sick. Twisting around she retched over the side of the boat. Uck, why was she so damnably weak? Why couldn't she handle the torture like Ethan could? Or Luke, who was, more often then not, the torturer himself?

She took a few more gulping breaths, not wanting to be sick again. Hero didn't know how long she sat there, but next thing she knew Clara Chesterfield was shaking her awake. The daughter of Apollo looked red faced and melancholy, it was no secret she and Dan had been more then just friends.

"Hero, honey, you have to wake up now, Luke wants us in his chambers," she said gently. Hero sat up and stretched herself out. Her limbs were painful from the uncomfortable position she had fallen asleep in.

"How's Dan?" she asked softly. Clara's face crumpled and she let out a small sob.

"He- he didn't make it," she said quietly. Hero felt that sick feeling return. She wrapped her skinny arms around Clara and the older girl calmed herself.

"Come on Hero, we have to go," she said, straitening up and offering her hand. She took it, and together they walked off towards Luke's rooms.

---

David Meyers and Ethan were already there. They both looked around as the girls entered. Hero gave Ethan a sad smile and her brown eyes passed right over David. She'd never liked the son of Ares. Luke looked up and stood to greet them. The room was comfortable, with burgundy colored chairs and a thick rug. Much better then the bunks most of them had to sleep in.

"Clara. Hero," he said and Hero could tell it was one of the rare moments he was entirely himself. They both nodded and he went on, "I've gathered you here for a reason. I want you to go on a little... mission for me. Are you all up for it?"

The demigods exchanged looks. Then, in unison, they muttered their consent. Luke smiled.

"Good. In one week you need to leave to find a son of Hades," he began. Ethan cut him off, something most half bloods would not have the courage to do.

"Do you mean that one that was with Percy Jackson?" he asked. _Whoa, _Hero thought, _hold up. _But Luke nodded.

"Yes, Nico di Angelo. I have it from one of the spies that Hades never broke the oath, although the boy is Hero's age, he was born in the year 1932. Lotus Casino," he explained. Everyone but Ethan looked surprised. Stunned even. This was bad, now the other side had three powerful half bloods. Luke seemed to hear these thoughts.

"Your job is to get him on this side. His father is Hades, he is not welcome at camp. It should be fairly easy," he said. "You leave in a week. That is all."

He smiled once more and gestured to the door. The demigods left, excited suddenly, even Clara looked brighter.

"So, we get this Nico kid, and that gives us a path straight to the top!" David was saying. Ethan smiled and agreed. Hero grinned. One week wasn't horribly long.

"Hero, would you do me a favor?" Clara asked softly, "I want you to go make sure they give Dan a proper funeral. Please?" Hero hesitated until she saw the girl's face. She nodded and said goodbye to the others. She took a left turn down into the bowels of the ship until she got to the cells. Jesse Carlton, a son of Hephaestus, greeted her and directed Hero to the morgue.

---

She barely recognized the corpse, the face was burned. The body was twisted and she could see a few exposed ribs. It was disgusting and she felt sick again. She turned to Isaac Nedley the boy in charge of cremation.

"I want him to have a proper funeral. Don't make me take this up with Luke, just do it," she said in her best tone of authority. The son of Deimos smiled and assured her he would be burned with the greatest of care. _Sick bastard, _she thought.

She sighed, and ran down the hall, wanting to get out of there, but as she passed a cell she heard a voice.

"Hey you!" it said, definitely female. Hero whirled around, searching for the voice. It was coming from one of the lower cells that were situated so that water come come in. Nasty. She saw a pale hand slip through the bars.

"What?" Hero asked. There was a pause.

"Help me out here? I'm kind of stuck," the voice said. Hero rolled her eyes.

"Because you're a prisoner," Hero said. _Duh_, she girl in the cell sighed.

"I'm not stupid, but I would appreciate if someone helped. Where's Dan Carson, he's my brother. Let me talk to him," she said. Hero's gut clenched.

"He was executed for treason this morning," she informed her coolly.

"What?" the voice said coldy. "Is that what you call it? More like murder!"

"Who _are_ you?" Hero said crouching down to peer in through the bars. She saw a girl in her late teens, with long curling black hair, milk and honey skin and large brown eyes. An angry gash marred her prefect features.

"I'm Silena Adelaide Beauregard, daughter of Aphrodite. And if you don't help me, I'll be killed. Do you really want that one your conscience?" she asked.

"Like I care what happens to god brats," she said airily. To her annoyance the girl laughed.

"What are you, like twelve? I doubt your that jaded. What's your name?" Silena asked. Hero blinked.

"Hero Laurence, daughter of Nike," she replied automatically. Silena smiled as if that was exactly what she wanted to hear.

"See, you are all still 'god brats' that title is something you all have and all use. No matter how much you hate them, the gods are part of you. Luke Castellan will never get that no matter what he does, he'll still be Luke Castellan, son of Hermes," Silena said. Hero frowned, she guessed that was true but...

"I can't help you," she said. Silena sighed.

"Fine, at least get me some paper and a pen. I need to write a letter," she said. Hero didn't know why she said yes, but she did. Was she a traitor?

**And there you have Hero. Constructive criticism is a plus! I know I need a beta, but this is just the introduction chapter! Please tell me what I need to improve in. Thanks!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Ok, so here's the next chapter! Shakespeare owns the quote by the way. **

**Thank you for the reviews! **

**Child of Hades: Thank you, here's an update!  
greekmythologyluver7: Aww, thanks. I plan to.  
Sheva Das: I'd love it if you'd beta the next chapter!  
crimsonword142: She's actually twelve, she was ten when she found out about halfbloods. But yes, Hero does have a colorful vocabulary.  
Ellen 26: I sent you a review reply. Thank you so much for telling me what Ethan looked like!  
**

Time had always been a strange thing. That was a given, knowing who controlled it. The week passed achingly slow for Hero, who couldn't wait to get off the ship. For Silena, who was due to die the day before Hero would leave, it passed way too fast. The more she thought about it, Shakespeare pretty much summed that up in _As You Like It. _

_"Time travels in divers paces with divers persons."_ As you like it,_ (3.2.328)_

If that was still relelvent four hundred years later Shakespeare must have inherited a lot of Athena's brains. Hero was named partly after a character from on of his plays, though partly from the Greek myth Hero and Leander. Both of those girls were useless. One was just there to be pretty, nothing like the other character of Beatrice, who was at least witty. And the other was a priestess of Aphrodite who died for a pointless lost love. They were weak.

This Hero would never be weak. But every day she returned to Silena's cell and listened to the girl talk about camp, about her friends and about 'Charlie' whom Hero assumed was something like a boyfriend. She could almost understand _wanting _to go to camp. Those were the thoughts of a traitor and she shook them away. Only a small part of her wondered what could have made Luke turn from that. Luke though, never let anyone in on his secrets. Looks like yet another unanswered question. Number 245,726 or something like that.

That day Silena finished her letter. Hero had been supplying her with a steady stream of paper until she got the words right. Then she had handed it to Hero to give to Charles Beckendorf, if she ever got to see him. Just now Hero sat on her bunk, reading the paper. No secret was safe with Hero, but now she was regretting reading it. The letter had brought tears to her eyes, something she hadn't experienced happen in years. No matter how queasy she felt, she almost never cried. Silena though, really understood love. She wiped her eyes angrily with the side of her blanket and threw her long legs over the side of her bed.

There were no more goodbyes, Silena was going to be killed within the hour and anyone found around her cell would insantly be labelled traitor. Part of her though, wanted to go punch Luke in the nose and tell him that if he so much as harmed a hair on the older girl's head... but in the life of a Kronos recruit there was no time for empty threats. Silena was gone now. She took a few breathes to steady her spinning visage, dizzy from thinking too hard.

Normally she would go see Ethan in a situation like this, but he wouldn't understand why she felt like she owed this girl. Heck, _she _didn't even know, maybe it was just the different perspective she had given her? Plus, Ethan would be right there with Luke and David to oversee she died as painfully as possible. That made her stomach twist even more. She hated both the fact that Silena's last moments would be in pain, (even if she barely knew the girl), and she hated that someone she knew so well could inflict it. Yes, she was definitely going soft.

Hours passed by slowly, tomorrow they would leave this place and go to find this kid. Maybe he could win them this war. Maybe he was even cute. She had to smile a bit at that. She lay back on her pillow and pulled the sheets up to her chest. Burying her face in the pillow her dark red hair fell around her face. The hair that that earned her nick names from Carrot Head to Flame Hair. Stupid immature losers. She fell asleep holding back tears that she would never let come.

---

"Hero, come on, wake up," she heard Ethan's voice before she conscientiously became aware of him shaking her shoulder gently. She sat bolt upright and sighed in relief.

"You scared me," she said breathlessly. He smiled slightly, and replied.

"It's four AM, but time for us to go," he said softly. "He's in New York City, but the exact whereabouts are unknown."

She nodded, picking up the backpack she had packed and slinging it over her shoulder. She had fallen asleep in decent clothes just in case Luke decided on an I-know-it's-the-middle-of-the-night-but-this-can't-wait-any-longer departure. Obviously, he had. Ethan was all packed and ready to go.

"Bring a jacket," he whispered. "It's cold for June." She turned and picked up a slightly rumpled brown sweater. She put in on over the light blue tee-shirt she was wearing.

"Let's go," she said, side stepping him and walking out the door. He followed in silence until they were at last at sea level. Luke was waiting there, Clara and David were waiting nervously in the boat. To her surprise he smiled at them, something he rarely ever did and she realized Kronos didn't have any control over him at the moment. It would take a while for the souls to settle down inside him. She shuddered and not just because she had just stepped out into the wind.

The little platform was a couple of feet above the waters of the Long Island Sound. It was just a mile to Manhattan from there, but in that mile the God of the Sea could do a lot of damage. The winds had picked up and the waves were thrashing against the boat, lightening crackling among the clouds. Hero gulped.

"As you can see," Luke called over the wind, "the gods have become aware of your leaving. But I wouldn't worry...much. They still don't know what we aim for."

Luke needed to take pep-talk classes. Badly. The man reached his hand out to Hero and she grasped it. He helped her to the ladder, confident on the slippery surface of the platform. When both hands were on the ladder she felt safer, but as soon as Clara reached up to help her down she froze. _Please don't let me die, _she prayed. Not to the gods, just to whatever watched over her. If anyone did. She dropped into the boat next to Clara and the two demigods in the boat steadied her. She thanked them and sat down beside the daughter of Apollo.

She glanced up to see Ethan calmly walking along in the dark. His arms were out for balance and for a second he stumbled. Hero cried out, the words lost in the wind. She had to squint through the darkness, but the next second he dropped into the boat besides her. Luke smiled once more and cut the rope, leaving them to the mercy of the sea.

Ethan lowered his mouth to her ear, "You're soaking, aren't you cold?" She looked down she realized in the weak light of the lanturn that she was indeed quite wet.

"A bit, but it can't be helped can it?" she said loudly. He nodded and focused his green eye on the lights of the city.

---

They crawled on the shore, soaking wet and shivering, but alive. Hero got up and spat some seaweed out of her mouth. As soon as the boat tipped over she had been sure they were goners. Looked like the old titan Oceanus was looking out for them. She stood shakily on her long legs, worried they would collapse from under her. Fortunately they held up long enough for her to look around. David lay groaning on the sand, not quite ready to get up and Ethan was looking out to sea. Clara was... wait, Clara was gone! She ran up beside Ethan and called out.

"Clara!" She screamed, "Clara where are you?"

Ethan turned to look at her sadly, but her eyes hardened. "She can't be," Hero insisted. They heard a voice behind them and Ethan's face relaxed.

"Who can't be what?" the voice asked. Hero turned and grinned widely. Clara approached from behind and they could just make out her outline against the lightening sky.

"He thought you were gone," she said. Clara smiled sadly.

"No, I'm still here," she said. She brushed some blond hair out of her eyes and David joined them.

"Let's get to that hotel Luke said he got reservations for us, I need some," he said. The others nodded and they began to walk. As soon as they got to a street, Ethan turned to them.

"These are our IDs, don't lose them. Clara and I are siblings and Hero is our cousin. David is my friend from college okay?" he said glancing down at the cards. He let out a small groan, "Luke should know better then to give us names like these. Who's name is Michevelle?" Hero peeked at the cards. A picture of Ethan matched with Michevelle Davenport. Clara; Jessmarie Davenport. Daivd; Leonard di Capricorn. Okay, that won for least original. And her own. Instead of Hero Laurence that caption for the tall red head read 'Guinevere DeMassey' Interesting.

David flagged down a taxi. As they piled in the cab driver gave them a curious look. Most would at four soaking people under eighteen, but he didn't say anything. He looked like he was in college, one of a bunch of students who drove people around to pay for school. He had blond hair tucked under a cap, and the most unusual gold eyes. Like Clara's. She wondered if he might be a demigod, but most didn't live that long. He gave Clara a wink and she looked away quickly. No remarks were made and the ride passed in silence. When they arrived in front of the hotel Clara scrambled out of the car. Ethan gave her a funny look and paid the driver. He flashed a winning smile.

"Keep it. But beware, the di Angelo kid won't betray us unless we give him reason too," and he winked. Ethan stumbled backwards, surprised. The door slammed shut and the taxi took off.

"Th-that was may father," Clara stuttered. Hero's eyes widened.

"Lord Apollo?" she asked. Ethan answered for her.

"Yes, and of course he knows the mission we've been given."

This could raise a few issues.

**OK, there's chapter two. I know it was a bit rushed but... I needed to get them in NYC!**

**R&R please, let me know what you think! Oh, and check out my one shot, entitled: Ms. Connway.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Ok, so here's the next chapter! People die, so be aware.**

**Thank you for the reviews! **

**Star Dust2345- Aww, thank you. Hope you enjoy this chapter!  
greekmythologyluver7- Yeah, I should have said the harbor. Oh well, I'm from Arizona LOL.**

David led them towards the door, Ethan kept looking over his shoulder nervously. Clara seemed shaken up from the chance encounter with her father. Hero didn't know what to think. The ambitious part of her wanted the glory and recognition she would receive if they succeeded. The other part wanted to run away and hide.

The hotel was nice, not the Ritz, but clean and accommodating. The clerk gave them a funny look but David shot him a glare that stayed his tongue. A few formal words exchanged and Ethan retrieved the fake ID cards and held them out.

"These seem in order Mr... Mr. Davenport," the guy said. He glanced down at the pictures and back up at the group, as if confirming to himself they were who they said they were. He nodded, and Hero pondered the irony of that situation as they made their way sleepily up the stairs. Two beds. Easy choice, Hero pulled back the covers, crawled under and made room for Clara. While David plopped down on the bed immediately, Ethan looked around distastefully. He had told her his dad had had a lot of money and she gathered he'd prefer something a bit more... swanky.

"Alright, we need a plan of action," he said, sitting on the edge of his bed. "Tomorrow were searching the East side, that's where our spies saw him last."

"Ethan, tell us later, okay?" David groaned. Ethan looked about to reply snappishly, but instead he thought better of angering the sleepy son of Ares.

"Fine. I'll wake you all up at eleven," he said, reaching over to turn out the light. The muffled 'Move over!' was heard as Ethan attempted to push David aside. Hero lay awake a little, but eventually the fatigue that came from their boat trip caught up to her brain and she was lulled to sleep by the other's gentle breathing.

---

Deja vu, again she was woken by Ethan way to early. She sat up groggily, the red numbers of the clock infiltrating though dark brown eyes so her sleep hazed brain could process it.

"Eight o clock, Eth?" she groaned. "I need more then four hours of sleep to do this quest!" Ethan ignored her, his green eye lit with excitement.

"I saw them! Percy Jackson's here, in the city! Imagine if we caught him!" he exclaimed. "He's down by Central Park, c'mon!"

Immediately Hero was alert. Percy Jackson! If they could only... but then she thought of how he could almost beat Luke at sword fighting, how he was bound to have people with him.

"Who's he with?" David asked, mirroring her thoughts.

"Annabeth Chase and Grover Underwood. Nothing we can't handle," he said confidently. The others nodded and went to go get dressed. Central Park wasn't that far away but they loitered, going over the plan. Hero protested the idea at once. The three older kids would attack the others in one on one combat, and Hero would wait incase the battle went sour.

"I'm not a baby!" she protested vehemently all the way down the block. The others exchanged looks, which she disliked even more. Ethan put his hand on her shoulder. _At least he doesn't crouch down. I'm what, six inches shorter then him? _

"Hero, these are really experienced half bloods. We wouldn't want you to be hurt, you're like out little sister..." he began. Hero tried to ignore how much the words 'little sister' hurt. She cut him off angrily.

"What if you _die_? What do I do then? Do you think I don't care if any of you die?" she snapped, pushing his hand off. Clara looked sympathetic, David looked stoic and Ethan looked angry. She couldn't decide which she hated more. She sped up a little, thankful for her long legs. It was already two o clock, David had insisted on breakfast, Clara had insisted on a shower and Hero had insisted on letting her clothes dry, which had taken way too long. They had probably missed them. After lunch, Clara had thought she saw blond and black haired heads bobbing through the crowd, but in New York city, it could be anyone. Plus, they were looking for the di Angelo kid again.

By the time they searched downtown, uptown, west side, east side and every other side of Manhattan there was, it was getting dark.

"This is ridiculous, let's go back to the hotel," David said. Ethan shook his head.

"We're close, I can feel it," he said. Clara groaned and Hero agreed. They had been walking for hours, she had blisters on her feet, she wanted to sleep and it was uncomfortably warm in the city at night. She wanted to lie down. But they reluctantly followed Ethan back to the park as he explained that they might have made camp.

"Why the hell wouldn't they just get a hotel room?" David had asked. Ethan hadn't had an answer but now he must have been laughing at them inside. There was a boy, about three years older then her, black hair, tan olive skin. Distinctly Greek looking, with a blond girl, tall and tan. They were arguing and Hero heard the name Percy spoken. Ethan smiled. Clara was gripping Hero's arm painfully. In a moment, there would be a fight. And though she wouldn't be a part of it unless things went horribly wrong, she felt the adrenaline rush through her veins. From her vantage point behind the think bush she saw Ethan draw his sword, Apocalypse and David his mace. Clara took out her bow and shot a warning, just past Percy Jackson's ear.

Hero got a good look at him then. So, this was the enemy. He didn't look like a hero, he looked scared. She almost laughed, but that would have given her away. She heard the boy hiss Ethan's name. She was surprised. She hadn't known Ethan had met Percy Jackson. She saw the son of Nemesis deliver the first stroke. Jackson blocked it easily. But he wouldn't know that Ethan knew how to work around the one eye thing. That made her feel a little better.

David engaged the girl, Annabeth Chase. They fought for a while before David made a grave error. Hero saw it coming and clasped her hands over her mouth to keep from crying out. He reached up with two hands over his head, intending his weapon to come down hard on her head, but as he did this, Chase stabbed her knife through his ribs. David gasped, a look of surprise as he fell to his knees. Ethan turned around with a shout and Percy Jackson, who had just took a swing, was too late to stop it. Riptide, the famous sword, slashed through Ethan's side and his hands went to stench the spurt of blood. His knees buckled and he fell. Two of three companions down! Clara screamed, whirling to help the fallen. But Grover Underwood hit her on the head with his club. Hero wanted to rush into battle, but Ethan had told her one thing. Never attack in anger (1), because you will soon be killed. She wasn't going to take a three against one chance. She bit down on the sleeve of her shirt to keep from crying out loud. A tear dripped down her face. No, this couldn't be happening. No...

"This one's not dead," Percy Jackson said, poking Clara gently. Not dead? Hero's heart lifted slightly. She still wanted to run at that stupid god brat and stab his guts out. The satyr looked worried.

"We'll take her back to camp," he said. Camp! No, they couldn't! Her heart was beating fast, she almost missed what the girl said.

"Ethan's not dead yet," the daughter of Athena said with a slight southern accent. Hero's heart leapt again. But what about David?

"He will be soon. We need to make camp, it's late," Jackson said. Hero felt a surge of hate run through her. That stupid, cruel, ass of the hero! The satyr picked Clara up gently and the three walked off. She waited a few moments, to make sure they were gone. Then ran towards David's body and where Ethan was struggling to breath.

"Eth!" she cried, dropping to her knees beside him. "Ethan, don't die. Come on! You gotta, we gotta--" She pushed back his shirt to see the wound. It was deep, blood everywhere. Ethan...

"Hero," he said, so softly she almost didn't hear him. "Take my sword, you'll need it."

"Don't say that! Ethan, you'll need it!" she said, no longer able to hold back her tears.

"Don't cry Hero, be strong. Take the sword and save Clara. Be a good girl," he said, then he gasped once more and then nothing. Not dead. Please, not Ethan. She cried anyway, like the scared, sorrowful preteen she was. It seemed to be hours until she finally looked up at the dark sky, the city lights invisible above the trees. She touched Ethan's face gently, taking the sword off the ground where it lay near him. Curious suddenly, she lifted up the eye patch. A thin scar where the eye should have been...

__

"You know what I did to the guy who took my eye?" Fifteen year old Ethan asks her ten year old self. She looks at him and laughs.

"No, what did you do?" she asks smiling. His face becomes serious.

"I killed him. And then I cut out his heart... and ate it," then he laughs. She giggles nervously, but she never does find out if he's joking or not...

**In the next chapter there will be: an assination attempt foiled, a prisoner taken and the indroduction of a certain son of Hades...**


	4. Chapter 4

**Haha, update! Sorry it's not very long :P**

**.- Thank you! Here is an update!  
****Vera A- Thanks! You sure know how to make people happy :) This is my favorite story that I'm writing so far.  
greekmythologyluver- Okay, sounds cool :) Thanks for the review!  
Drishti Choudhury- Oh, what age did I say he was? I know he's twelve or thirteen, did I make a mistake? And thank you, I love developing OCs.  
evongreen07- Okay... whatever you want...  
Ellen 26- You're reviews are always exciting to read :) Thanks! Sorry for killing Ethan :( :( Plot necessary.**

Hero tore through the bushes blindly. She was going to kill Percy Jackson, an act that would get her a one way ticket to Tartarus. But she was going to do it. No backing down now. It took her a while to find where they had made camp, and when she did she nearly stumbled over the sleeping form of Annabeth Chase. A few inches from her Percy Jackson lay, their fingers entwined. The satyr was sleeping, draped over a low tree branch with Clara unconscious at the base.

Looking back that should have been a warning sign. All asleep with no guard? But she had forgotten Ethan's advice. She was angry and ready to attack. She looked down at the daughter of Athena, gray eyes closed and wild hair framing her face.

_Sorry I have to kill him, _she apologized to her. Now this stranger was going to lose Jackson like Clara had lost Dan. No remorse, no mercy. That was the Titan's motto and now Hero had adopted it. She stood there before drawing Apocalypse. It was painful to see the sword away from it's owner when Ethan lay dead.

She held it over the boy's heart when she made a mistake. She looked at his face. It looked peaceful, the olive skin illuminated in the moonlight and the long lashed eye lids covering the famous green. He looked so innocent, like her couldn't possibly have killed anyone. But he had! Part of her told her to stab. The other wanted just to go back to Luke. That would mean admitting defeat, and she couldn't do that.

Stab. That's what she told herself and for a moment she obeyed. Apocalypse came down, just about to pierce between the ribs. Then an arm reached around her neck, pulling her backwards. A knife pressed to the hollow of her throat. She felt another body holding her back, but no human warmth. Was it a monster? But the voice was human. A boy's to be more specific.

"Drop it," he whispered. She gasped and held onto the blade. The knife was pressed closer and she opened the hand so the sword fell to the ground. The pressure lightened up a little and she opened her mouth to scream, but it was pressed deeper so a thin line of crimson trickled down her neck. "What's your name?"

"H-hero," she stuttered. "My name is Hero." Now that she was unarmed he let her drop to the ground. She got to her feet, reaching for Apocalypse. Her captor placed his sword blade over it, so she couldn't get it without directly challenging him. And as she couldn't see him, and didn't know who it was, it wouldn't be wise to attack. Perhaps he was a minor god or something. He bent low to pick up the sword and pressed his own into her back. Hero's eyes narrowed. He was trying to control her, make her timid. Well Hero would never be timid. "Who the hell are you?"

"Shut up," he said. She rolled her eyes.

"That's a nice name," she told him. She squinted up, trying to see better. He was tall, but he wasn't very old. Her age, or maybe a little older. He kicked the sword away and didn't answer.

"Percy, wake up," he said, poking Jackson gently. So, he was definitely on the gods' side. Crap. The hero groaned and his eyes flickered open.

"What?" he asked groggily. "Nico? It's the middle of the night... I told you not to wake me up unless it was an emergency." So this was Nico di Angelo? This was the boy that Ethan and David had lost their lives trying to get on their side? Anger boiled up inside her again.

"Oh, yeah. It's definitely not an emergency when you're almost assassinated," di Angelo said sarcastically. The other boy sat up quicker then Hero would have thought possible.

"What?" he demanded. Then he saw Hero on the ground, inching towards Apocalypse and his eyes widened.

"Looks like another prisoner, huh?" the son of Hades asked. Hero snarled, opening her mouth to protest.

"I will not be taken prisoner!" she said, kicking out with her foot. Di Angelo sidestepped and smiled down at her, if you could call the malicious grin a smile.

"Looks like you don't have any choice," he said. Hero brushed some red hair out of her eyes and looked at him incredulously. How dare he! She stifled a frustrated scream.

"I am Hero, daughter of Nike, member of the fourth commanding rank in sector 2b of the Titan's Army. And I shall be treated as such!" she objected, making a lunge for Ethan's sword. Jackson aimed a fist in her direction and it caught her in the eye. She yelped, falling back and the Stygian iron blade rest on her neck.

"Then you're asking to be treated as dirt," Nico di Angelo replied.

"You're dirt!" she screamed, probably waking the whole city. Grover Underwood fell out of the tree and looked around. Annabeth Chase sat up and, seeing Hero being held at sword point with her left eye beginning to bruise, looked at Percy Jackson questionably. "You're brainwashed, worthless pawns of our stupid immortal parents who care nothing for us!"

Di Angelo raised an eyebrow, "And _you_ are the pawn of my crazy grandfather who sets his own minions against each other in fights to the death."

"I'll tie her up," Jackson said.

**Sorry if that sounded OOC... it's just the way Hero thinks of them.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Okay, I updated this, cause I have a plot for this one. The other's I'm kinda... winging. I'll update them soon, promise. Anyway, here's the next chapter! **

**Vera A- Promise to go fix those now. Here is a update!  
Cerebella- Sent you review replies, but OOC stands for Out Of Character, like when they're not the way they are characterized in the book/movie they come from. Thanks for the thoughtful reviews :)  
.- Here's the update (was that really a cliff hanger? I'm sorry, didn't realize it!)  
evongreen07- LOL, yeah...**

She must have passed out at one point, because next thing she knew, she was in the middle of a fight. Or rather, as her tired brain interpreted it: blond haired girl scolds black haired boy, black haired boy replies snippily, brown haired boy tells others to shut up, other black haired boy looks like living dead. But Hero's brain isn't always reliable and sometimes needs explaining. So here's what really happened:

"Stop jerking on the brakes Seaweed Brain!" Annabeth said testily. Percy did just that once more and turned to face her, much to the annoyance of the people in traffic behind him (who's in traffic at three AM anyway?) and closed his eyes as if praying for patience which the daughter of Athena found ironic.

"Look, I told you before we left the driving instructor only gave me a learners permit because he's an old friend of Paul's. He told me I was unfit to even ride in a car, let alone drive one, so unless _you _want to drive back to camp, I'm going the best I can!" Percy snapped. Annabeth looked offended and opened her mouth to speak.

"Would you guys stop fighting, my head hurts!" Grover growled. Yes, growled. He was positively grouchy because he had run out of cans, and satyrs get grumpy if deprived of metal to eat for very long. Nico snored, his head lolling back against the window, drooling slightly.

She choked against the gag and slowly slipped back to sleep. When she woke again she was in a bed, with a middle aged man hanging over her.

"We are not equip to handle prisoners, and the daughter of Apollo is badly wounded," she heard him say.

"Not equip to handle prisoners? We're in the middle of a freaking war!" Nico di Angelo's voice sounded incredulous.

"I'm sure Lord Apollo and Lady Nike would oppose to imprisoning their children," the old centaur, Chiron said.

"The children who betrayed them? Yeah, really likely," he said. Hero closed her eyes again, figuring they would stop talking if they knew she was awake.

"We will not become like them by imprisoning and torturing. You can be in charge of them, if you're so keen on revenge, Nico," Chiron said, pleased with himself, obviously not expecting what the son of Hades said next.

"Fine. I will." Chiron seemed as surprised as Hero. She had heard this boy didn't attend camp, let alone want to be a jailer for the camp, which had no facilities to handle prisoners. Ha, this would be a cinch, she could escape easily.

"Um... alright then. I'll leave you with the prisoners, I must go to archery," the centaur said and backed out of the room. There was silence for a few moments.

"You can wake up now, I can tell you're not asleep," the disgustingly familiar voice said. She was really getting sick of this kid. Her brown eyes flickered open and found his. She recoiled, dark obsidian. Unnatural, unholy, much like gold eyes every member of the Titan's army had seen at least once. Behind that olive skin seemed to fade to white before being saved by ink black hair that fell to the boy's shoulders. Nico di Angelo. Part of her, the stupid annoying ADHD part thought _he IS cute. _The other thought _this boy is the reason Ethan and David are DEAD. And he's not cute... he's creepy. Hero, control yourself. _

"So what if I'm not?" she replied lamely.

"You joined the Titan's Army. Tell me why, I don't get it." So, he was going to ask her questions.

"There's no other choice. Not when they find you. It must be so easy here to leave. If you leave you die. It's simple," she told him honestly. What could it hurt? He seemed to ponder this a second.

"You're wrong. It's hard to leave, really hard," he said, as if to himself. What the heck was he talking about. He stood up abruptly, startling her. "I'm going to leave and lock the door behind me. Do us both a favor, and don't even attempt to leave." Weird guy.

As the door slammed shut, she wondered briefly what the heck he meant. Then she went about doing just what he told her not to.

---------

It wasn't that hard. There was no security whatsoever. Hero beheld the cabins for the first time, mentally matching them up. There was the cabin Jackson slept in, there was the cabin Luke had spent years in. Why couldn't she have had a taste of being accepted like that? Right, because her mother wasn't important enough to deserve a cabin. Her dark eyes flashed eyeing the twelve cabins. No sign of honoring Nike or Nemesis. Ethan was just as unwelcome.

"Hey you! You new?" Hero whirled around that the voice, high and light. The up turned brows and structure of the face were familiar, as well as the tilt of the eyes. One of Luke's younger sisters.

"Sort of..." she said quietly. The girl nodded, a smile on her face.

"I'm Mina, what's your name? Are you twelve too? You look like it. You're taller then me. Lucky, I'd love to be taller. Are you determined? I got determined last year, after they caught me stealing some candy from the camp store," she said. Hero watched her lips move, not quite believing anyone could talk that fast.

"My name is Hero. And I have to leave, do you know the way?" Mina's brow furrowed.

"Why do you have to leave? You don't have a quest already do you? Only important people like Percy Jackson gets quests regularly. Big Three kids you know? By the way, I love the name Hero, too bad Hero in the myths died, she was cool. Are you named after her? I bet you are! I wasn't named after anyone in particular, but my middle name is Greek. Isn't Xanthe a beautiful name? It means blond, I'm so glad I am! Dad's not blond and usually god traits overrule mortal traits. Half the Athena cabin members are blond though, and their mom has black hair." _Whoa motor mouth, slow down and show me the exit!_

"Look, that's great, but I need the exit now before-- crap," she swore, as Jackson and di Angelo rounded the corner from the sword arena. Jackson pointed her out, recognizing, no doubt, her red hair. "See ya, Mina was it?" Hero took off running before the daughter of Hermes could say anything more.

Now Hero was a very fast runner. Hey, her mother even had a shoe company (actually they used her name without asking, not very nice). She wasn't expecting to run right into Annabeth Chase. Hero stumbled back with a surprised gasp. Chase looked down at her, as if trying to remember her from somewhere. Then her grey eyes widened in recognition, as if to say _that's the crazy one who almost killed Percy! _Things just weren't going her way.

-------------

Locked up again, with Nico di Angelo reluctantly standing guard. She didn't mean to, but he was feeling the brunt of her abuse, though he seemed hardly perturbed.

"You're hero isn't so very impressive. I bet I could take him, if some weird kids who think they know how to use a sword didn't go swinging them all over the place," she said, which was the best insult she could come up with at such short notice, even though it wasn't very good.

"You're the most unimpressive Hero I've ever met," he said. Oh, so he was using a play of words. _Wow, look at me! I can insult you using your name! Hee hee, I'm so clever! _Calm yourself.

"Whatever. I could escape this place even if my eyes were gouged out," she said, as if escaping would be a piece of cake. He turned towards her and raised thin black eyebrows.

"Are you suggesting something?" He reached into his pocket, as if for a knife.

"Ha ha. You know, you could be a comedian, if you weren't so creepy looking," she told him, and went back to spooning nectar into Clara's mouth. She wasn't doing to well, she hadn't woken up yet. If she died... Hero would really be alone. She choked on an expected sob and di Angelo looked over curiously. She bit her tongue. _Not in front of him, please!_ she begged. But a tear escaped down her cheek and for the second... no third time that week, she was crying. Why the sudden waterworks? She didn't really know.

"Are you crying?" He asked, sounding as bewildered as she felt. She shook her head violently.

"No! I'm not... I'm just... upset. And you would be too, in my situation," she lifted her face and the expression dared him to say something. "I'm supposed to be dead. I should have killed myself."

"That's wrong," he told her. She shrugged. It was the way things were. If you were captured, you killed yourself. He looked at her, obviously wondering what kind of sick morals she had.

"You got a knife on you?" she joked. He didn't really look amused. Hero had a plan now, if she could get the son of Hades to come with her, at least just past the borders of the camp, she could reconcile herself in the eyes of Kronos. Relationships were based on trust, so now to get him to trust her. This might take a while.

**Meh, I don't like how I characterized Nico in this. Don't really know why. Anyway, I love you hear what you guys have to say, and on a completely random note, vote on my poll? I want to see the results for this one, and I need another opinion. So, I apologize for the flat Nico, I promise to make him better next chapter :)**


	6. Chapter 6

**OMG, is it? Could it be... an update? Why yes, yes it is! I'm so sorry. Tons of stuff to do. My heart just isn't in writing my other stories. Expect some cleaning out. Anyway, as I like this one the best, I am going to keep it. And update more often. I have big, evil, and somewhat scary plans for Hero. Which reminds me, I need you to vote on my poll, 'tis very important in shaping the end of this story :D and of course, this is now AU, because of TLO. It's set the spring of BOTL.**

Trust can be defined as relying on a person's good qualities. Hero hadn't shown any of her good qualities to Nico di Angelo, she sometimes wondered if she posessed any. And if you don't pocess any, you fake it. What intrinsic worth would merit di Angelo's good graces? A respect for the dead? A sarcastic nature? Hero could probably find the latter amoung the qualities she did posess. But it wasn't exactly a 'good' one.

"If I tell you something you could use against Luke, would you unchain me?" she asked. The son of Hades stared at her, one eye brow raised and a look of sour amusement on his pale face.

"Depends. What could you tell me?" Hero thought a bit. Then she smirked, leaning as far towards Nico as possible. Three days in confinement and her wrists hurt badly, the skin red where the metal cuffs had chaffed her. The basement was bare, except a cot, the chains that kept her prisoner, the chair Nico di Angelo sat on, and a couple boxes of strawberry preserves. She saw him lean forward a bit, so she said the next words in a dramatic whisper.

"Well, he has a weakness," she said, smiling inwardly at his curious look, "his weakness is... is... toffee ice cream."

And she laughed as he let out a little groan of frustration and sat back. This whole _trust _thing wasn't going so well. Which is why Hero needed a change of plans. She had just gotten half way through a plot when there was a fumbling of keys on the other side of the door. A black haired head poked into the room, and Nico stood up. Percy Jackson stepped aside revealing Clara. A bandage was wrapped around her head, but she was smiling and looked relatively healthy.

"A vistor for her," the son of Poseidon said. Di Angelo nodded, stepping out of the room. Jackson followed, locking the door behind him. The first thing Hero noticed was that Clara wasn't chained as she was.

"Clara, you're alive!" Hero exclaimed with a wide smile. Clara gave her a half smile.

"Yeah, I guess I am." Clara sounded odd, guilty almost.

"What is it? Look, I have a plan, I need to IM Eth- Jesse and then get Nico di Angelo into the woods and we'll be out of here!" Hero saw her cringe when she nearly said Ethan.

"He's dead isn't he?" Clara asked softly. "And David, too."

Hero bit her lip and nodded. Her friend closed her eyes, and exhaled weakly.

"Look, Hero. I'm not going to help you," Clara's gold eyes looked remorseful.

"Great! Then I just need you to- wait. You're _not _going to help me?" She felt dread knot up inside her. Why not?

"I-I want to stay here Hero, I like camp. You would too! You could stay with me, and we could be useful!" The older girl looked so hopeful, it nearly broke Hero's heart.

"No! Stay here, help _them? _They killed Ethan and David! You traitor! You turncoat! You deserter! You, you..." Hero's cache of synonyms failed her. She was going to cry again. She was going to be sick again. She was feeling weak again, because she knew there was nothing she could do. Her last hope had died.

Clara cringed. "I'm so sorry Hero. I'm really sorry." She turned to go, honey blond hair sticking out from under the gauze. And as she stepped out of the room, Hero knew that if she ever saw Clara again it would be on a battlefield. Not as friends, as enemies. She choked back another sob as di Angelo slipped into the room. More of a shadow then a boy really. Her eyes hardened.

She wouldn't let it hurt her. She wouldn't be so inscure. Screw trust, time to run away again.

-------------

Sprinting towards the woods with an angry boy at your heels. It really gave you time to think. Especially when it was so easy to outrun him. She was confident that her plan would work. Confidence was a key component to success. Luke had told her that once. Running always cleared her head, she was able to momentarily forget the mess her life had become, and just tune in to the pounding of her feet and the beat of her heart.

Taking a wrong turn once or twice, she reached her goal in unfamiliar territory. She turned to Nico di Angelo, letting him catch up. He overestimated the distance between them and collided with her. She stumbled a bit, and when she straighted herself she saw di Angelo had a grin on his face.

"Gotcha," he said, holding up her wrist, which he was holding tightly. She grinned back.

"Do you?" she said. He looked at her face warily. She stared up at him, noticing the way her face reflected in his eyes. The pupil was almost invisible, which was a very strange effect. And his hand was incredibly cold. Nico di Angelo certainly was an interesting person.

"What did you mean when you said it was hard to leave?" she asked. He hesitated.

"I've tried to leave before, but those people are the only ones I have now," he said lightly. "It's hard to leave when if you go, you'll be alone."

"Then I'm so sorry Nico," She leaned up a pressed her lips to his for a second. She didn't like the tingle she felt when she pulled away. Then she stepped back, and signaled with her left hand. "I'm really sorry."

_"I'm sorry," her ten year old self says to Ethan. He looks at her oddly._

_"Never apologize," he tells her, "it's superfluous, and when we win it will be unneeded."_

_"I'm sorry," she says. He sighs. "...wait. What does sue-per-ful-ous mean?"_

_He smiles. "It means you never have to apologize to anyone for anything."_

_"Okay," she says, grinning._

**Personally, I think this is the worst chapter. Horrible, horrible, horrible emotions. I'm not an emotional person, so they're hard to write -grrr-**

**I think this chapter needs an explanation. Well, there's some stuff you may have missed. I'm also sorry it's so short. If you noticed it calls him 'Nico' once or twice. Not his surname or full name, which is part of a transaction. The last line Hero repeats to Nico what Clara said to her, just before Hero 'betrayed' him. Kind of. Hero's feeling broken, because Clara was like her sister. She also has minor autophobia (fear of being alone) which is why she takes it the way she takes it. And why did she kiss Nico? Was it because I suck at emotional transitions? Yeah, slightly. But it was also because she was apologizing the way Clara had said sorry, and knowing that the other person would never accept it. So now that I've REALLY confused you, review? **


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